Wayfair to slash 1,650 jobs from its global workforce

SAN FRANCISCO: E-commerce company Wayfair has announced to lay off 1,650 employees, or 13 per cent of its workforce globally, to reduce costs.

The latest job cuts are expected to provide the company more than $280 million in annualised cost savings, according to CNBC.

"I want to say thank you to the 1,650 team members who will be leaving us today. You are all valued and talented individuals, and you have each made incredible contributions to Wayfair and our customers," Wayfair’s co-founder and CEO, Niraj Shah, said in a blogpost on Friday.

The pandemic caused Wayfair to see its business explode as stuck-at-home consumers splurged on home goods such as furniture and decor. Sales jumped from $9 billion to $18 billion "almost overnight" and the company needed to increase its headcount, Shah said.

However, demand for household products started to decline as the virus's effects lessened. As a result, Wayfair has needed to reduce its workforce in order to ensure its staffing levels are proportionate to how much business it’s doing, he explained.

The company said it will be offering severance to those who are impacted, and support them throughout this transition.

"We will also be providing access to employee assistance programme resources and Wayfair Alumni networking support, as well as other benefits and resources," Wayfair said.

In 2022, Wayfair fired 870 people, or 5 per cent of the company's global workforce, as the growth it anticipated has not materialised.

Meanwhile, Google has laid off more than 1,000 employees in the latest round of job cuts announced by the company, media reports said.

The company laid off workers in several departments, including Google’s hardware, central engineering teams, and Google Assistant.